


A Genuine Life

by cloudycalico916



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Accidental Voyeurism, Angst, Cisco is confused, Cisco is really regretting his life choices, Creepy Eobard Thawne | Harrison Wells, Fluff, Guilty Cisco, Hartley just wants love, Implied/Referenced Sex, M/M, Manipulative Eobard Thawne | Harrison Wells, Non-Consensual Voyeurism, Smut, Voyeurism, and tired of Thawne screwing up peoples lives, barely, i made some serious edits, idk why i thought it was ok to post before, just a little, kind of, looking into Eowells' desicions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-15
Updated: 2020-12-15
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:13:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28085241
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cloudycalico916/pseuds/cloudycalico916
Summary: Barry, Caitlin, and Cisco set out to clear out EoWells' house. Cisco's Vibe powers have no mercy and things are revealed.
Relationships: Hartley Rathaway/Eobard Thawne | Harrison Wells
Kudos: 9





	A Genuine Life

**Author's Note:**

> Yes Barry could probably clear out the whole house in under 5 minutes but lets just say he's paranoid about using his speed at Eowells' house, it feels jinxed for some reason.

“We don’t have to do this today.” Caitlin’s voice rang out in the heavy silence, speaking the words they were all thinking. Part of Cisco was eager to agree and get back into the van so he could return to the comfort of his own little apartment. The other, arguably more reasonable, half knew that if they didn’t do this today it might never get done. (He would never admit it out loud but he also had a morbid curiosity to see what a guy like Thawne kept day to day. You know, other than the face of murder victims.) So he straightened his spine and in his most motivational voice declared “Better sooner than later.” Barry mumbled his agreement do doubt sharing Cisco’s desire to leave the premise.

Instead, he pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket and entered a code into the keypad that sat by the large intimidating door of Eobard Thawnes house. Despite the huge sheets of glass that made up the outer walls, it was impossible to see in from the outside. This was unsettling for a number of reasons. Each of them was armed with a box of trash bags, a sharpie, and a bitter determination to erase every bit of Thawne from their lives. Barry pushed the door, which opened without a sound, and the trio stepped inside taking in the vast interior and minimalistic decor.

“So, where should we start then?” Caitlin spoke up after a minute of silence.  
“Uh, why don’t we just, you know, spread out? Go room to room, and start sorting stuff. Clothes should be one category, we can donate those, and… actually, I think we should just keep electronics and anything that looks like it could give us info.” Barry said shrugging. Their shoulders dropped at the idea of splitting up but reluctantly, they agreed. Barry slipped around a corner and Caitlin's heels clicked as she hurried down the middle hallway. 

Cisco stayed put, opting instead to look around the foyer. The air was stale and scentless and the floor was gleaming. A coat hanger stood in the corner next to the front door. A good a place to start as any. He made his way over and took more time than necessary pulling out the first trash bag, marking it “clothing.” Shaking it out, he approached the coat hanger and started pulling various dust-collecting blazers and jackets of the hooks, shoving them carelessly into the bag. Each one felt like it cost as much as the house and he cringed at the thought of how wrinkled they would get in the bag. 

He was hardly looking when he grabbed the next coat and turned to put it in the bag. A horribly familiar feeling encased him just then. Cold and dizzying, and he understood what was happening before he turned to see the blue tint that had fallen over the landing.

The click of the door handle made him whip his head back around and his whole body went rigid as none other than Thawne entered the room looking cheerful and holding an umbrella.  
“-and they just expected me to give it to them! They thought they had me cornered since it was a public event.” his voice was warm and animated and Cisco tightened his hold on the jacket almost dropping it as Thawne held the door open for… Hartley? He giggled as he walked in, looking around the space in interest.  
“Here, I’ll take that,” Wells said helping Hartley out of his coat and hanging it up. The same one cisco was clutching.  
He switched topics swiftly, trying to maintain interest. “I’ve just received some excellent wine I think you’ll like.” He walked across the foyer looking more relaxed than Cisco had ever seen him and grinning in amusement as the younger man tried, in vain, to fix his windswept hair which was sprinkled with water droplets.  
“Wine before a tour? I'm surprised, have you forgotten your etiquette or are you that eager to get me drunk Harrison?” Hartley said, voice teasing. Harrison gave a dramatic sigh and shrugged, his serene smile betraying his true feelings. “Well if you aren’t as hungry as you said in the car, I’m certainly not opposed to skipping dinner all together.” Hartley rolled his eyes fondly and grabbed Harrison's arm.  
“You know I’m joking, wine sounds amazing right now. I’m still expecting a tour though. Looks like we got in just in time hmm? I can hear the rain picking up.” His voice faded as they turned the corner and Cisco was thrust back into the real world.

He leaned against the wall his thoughts racing. That was… different? Weird? definitely both. Even Team Flash's fun moments before discovering the truth about him, Cisco couldn't recall ever seeing Thawne like that. So chill. So not-carefully-controlling-every-action. Of course Cisco had known Hartley was close to him from work, (its was hard to ignore, what with him flaunting it about everywhere) and from the great-failed-revenge-plot, but he had never paid attention to the rumors that went around about them, not really caring enough about Hartley to ruminate his personal life. But seeing it like this? Well, he'd be damned is he wasn't curious.

All thought of what he was supposed to be doing flew out the window as Cisco hurriedly hung the coat back up and walked down the closest hallway. If he was seeing vibes of Hartley, then obviously he had left a strong imprint on the house. Possibly because, as far as Cisco knew, he was the only person other than Harrison to be in the house for a prolonged period of time. Cisco wondered how Thawne could have dropped someone so close to him without hesitation. Isn't... that what he did to them? No, Cisco decided. No, Thawne only befriended Cisco and Caitlin because they were important to helping Barry. But Hartley had nothing to do with them. Sure he sped up construction for the particle accelerator with his (Cisco hated to say it) genius. There was no reason for them to be close for that though, why did Thawne get sidetracked? What was it about Hartley that he he hadn't accounted for? That made him take such an unnecessary risk?

His mind was racing a million miles a minute, and he stopped in his tracks, trying to reel his thoughts back in, Vibing something by accident was one thing, but going looking for the visions was another ordeal that made his stomach twist. It felt like a massive invasion of privacy, not for Thawne, but for Hartley. This really didn’t feel like something he would want people to see. Cisco tried to reason that this would be a good way to get information on Thawne. After a moments hesitation, he shoved aside his guilt and opened the nearest door. Pushing a button he assumed was a light switch, Cisco saw that it was a rather unusual room, out of place from the rest of the house.

The floor was carpeted and there was a dust-covered white piano near one corner. Against a wall was a series of bookshelves, and opposite from it was a white couch with two gray pillows. The walls were painted a calming pastel green and, looking very strange on the couch, was a mouse plushie. Is was a fluffy little thing, it looked well-loved and as he got closer, Cisco spotted the white tag that labeled it a “PeaceSqueeze” He snorted, he thought he might have seen a commercial for those things, but couldn't quite remember. Shaking his head, he tried to focus again.  
Cisco’s first thought was that this was what he was looking for. But perhaps trying to have deniability, he picked up a few other objects first. As expected none of them had the desired effect, so he took a deep breath (he was rather hoping either Barry or Caitlin would walk in and interrupt him) and snatched up the stuffed animal. 

The effect was immediate. Blue fell over everything once more and Cisco spun around to take a good look at his surroundings. The room looked virtually the same minus all the dust and the fact that Thawne and Hartley were now present. The former was sitting poised at the piano, pressing out a delicate melody because of course he played the piano. He looked strange and after a moment Cisco realized it was because he was wearing casual clothes that comprised of sweatpants and a white t-shirt, Cisco almost laughed out loud, but the situation didn't feel as funny a second later. 

Hartley on the other hand was sitting on the floor in front of the bookshelf, he wore a large sweatshirt, sweatpants, and fluffy blue socks. His chin was resting on his drawn-up knees and he looked thoroughly depressed.  
Harrison halted his playing looking impatient when Hartley sighed “Look Hart, you don’t have to tell me why you did it, but I assure you that nothing your parents might have said about you is an accurate representation of the person in front of me, seriously. Vidi optimum et pulcherrimum ex vobis.”

“Hmph, flattery will get you nowhere Harrison.” Came the muffled reply.  
Harrison dropped his hands from the keys with an exasperated smile that suggested he knew otherwise and stood up to move to the couch.  
“I’m serious Hartley, your parents have never made an effort to get to know you, why do you still value their opinion? They have no idea of your brilliance and potential. I do, and I’m telling you that they are wrong.” His impatience bled through at the end of the sentence, his voice turning hard and blunt. Nevertheless it seemed to get the point across because Hartley pushed himself off the carpet and padded over to the couch, flopping down next to Harrison with a sigh, hugging the newer looking plushie to his stomach. 

Harrison brought up a hand to cup the shorter man’s face and pulled him into a gentle, lingering kiss. He pulled back and Hartley pouted but looked significantly lighter.  
“Your right. You always are. It just…” he sighed again “Y'know I don't really want to talk about it, but I know your right.”  
“Works for me, do you want to stay over tonight?”  
“If you don’t mind,” He pulled Hartley’s head into his lap, fingers in soft hair. "I never do." Hartley eyes closed, face relaxed as Harrison continued to play with his hair. Well’s gave a reassuring smile and probably realized he couldn’t be seen because he instead took off Hartley’s glasses and resumed the hair stroking. He gazed at the young man in his lap, looking bemused. Like he was trying to solve a particularly tricky equation.

The world returned to normal around Cisco before he could get a better look and he sat heavily on the couch, startling before remembering there was no one on it. Head in his hands, he reflected on his own life. When he knew where to look for it, it was easy to spot Eobard’s manipulation. Now he was seeing it happen to someone who was so obviously desperate for approval after being cast aside. Knowing it would happen again, and being unable to do anything was maddening. It made Cisco hate Thawne even more. He may dislike Hartley but no one deserved this. No one. Again came the question of why Thawne had allowed the relationship to pan out. The answer that seemed most likely to Cisco was that Hartley was just a broken man with enough misfortune to cross a monster. And Eobard was just enough of a monster to give him a happiness that was doomed from the start. How incredibly selfish of him to indulge in something that would destroy the life of one and benefit the other, for no (easily understood) reason.

Gathering his wits once more Cisco leaped off the couch and stormed out of the unusual room, pushing open the last door at the end of the hallway. As he registered the room, he was filled with sudden uncertainty. It was a bedroom. He carefully maneuvered around the room trying not to touch anything, fearing what he might see.

There was a chest of drawers and an armchair in a corner and Cisco decided to start there, figuring there weren’t many imprints that could be left on a chest of drawers. He pulled open a drawer, and after seeing that it looked mostly normal, he started rifling through the contents.  
It was mostly boring paperwork and pens. 

Cisco was hesitant to pick up a thin silver necklace, but it resulted in no vision. It probably never made it to its recipient. In the last drawer was a tablet. Bingo. He picked it up, his stomach immediately dropping when he was engulfed with blue. It was probably nothing, it was just a tablet!

“Oh no,” Cisco thought, dread accumulating in his stomach, he looked up preparing for the worst.

Hartley was laying on his back on the bed (fully dressed thank god) picking at his cuticles and looking bored out of his mind. He turned his head to look at Harrison, a pout taking over his face. Before he could open his mouth however Harrison spoke up.  
“Hartley, I warned you it wouldn’t be fun. If you’re bored go check the kitchen for food or something.” He was sitting in the armchair, eyes glued to the same tablet Cisco was holding, his fingers flying across the surface. He looked irritated  
“You could just-”  
“No, I couldn’t, I’m busy and there’re more useful things you could be doing right now, I don’t appreciate the distraction!” He snapped forgetting his patience.

Hartley didn’t look at all surprised at the outburst. He rolled his eyes and stared at the ceiling once more. As Cisco watched however, a devilish expression took over Hartley’s face, and he had a sinking feeling that he wasn't just going sit still. Sneaking another look at Harrison, Hartley quietly slipped of the bed and through a door which Cisco could only assume was a bathroom. 

After a few minutes alone with Thawne where he was filled with equal measures of curiosity and terror, the door opened again and he choked on his spit in surprise, eyes wide and glued to the doorway “oh god!” Cisco spluttered between coughs. Hartley stood in the doorway and Cisco’s earlier observation of him being fully clothed was now undone, for he stood in nothing but what could only be one of Harrisons white dress shirts because it was huge on him, the sleeves covered his hands and the hem was just low enough on his thighs that Cisco was unable to judge whether he was wearing anything underneath. Not that he was trying to. His hair was artfully mussed and his glasses were out of sight, he leaned confidently on the doorway but from his pink cheeks he was clearly a little embarrassed at his own shamelessness. From where he sat on a loveseat across the room Wells’ eyes flicked up briefly. Then he did a double take, fingers going still over the tablet.

“Hartley…” he said, warning creeping into his voice. Hartley feigned innocence. “What? Am I distracting you?” his face was carefully arranged but his eyes were alight with mirth, the blue of them standing out even against the tint of the vibe. He walked slowly to the couch and took the tablet from frozen hands placing it face down on the side table. He leaned in close but instead of kissing Harrison he pulled off his glasses with a teasing smile. Just as Cisco was considering throwing himself out the window, Hartley placed his knee on Harrison’s clothed one and said “Maybe you should teach me how to make myself useful hm?” 

It was as Harrison let go of his self-control and yanked Hartley into his lap, one hand gripping his thigh and the other on the back of his neck dragging him into a heated kiss, that Cisco tore finally himself away from the vision, letting the tablet clatter to the floor and letting out a loud “Argh!” Why didn’t he do that sooner? He knew what was happening, why did he stay so long? Feeling all the shame and guilt he had pushed aside earlier, now piled with regret, he trudged out of the room exhaustion and resignation falling heavily over him. 

He found Barry and Caitlin seated at the Kitchen counter.  
“There you are! We called you but you didn’t answer, we were just about to go looking…” Caitlin trailed off “Are you ok? You look a little flushed. You’re not feeling ill are you?” He waved her off feeling embarrassed. “N-no its nothing like that, I’ve been having…vibes and I don’t think we should continue with this just yet.” They looked at him sympathetically, and he shrugged off his annoyance cutting straight to the point. 

“Its not... Look there’s a lot of stuff here that isn’t Thawne’s. I didn’t just see him in my vibes I also saw…Hartley.” The name fell heavily from his lips, weighted down by guilt. Avoiding both their eyes, he explained about the coat hanger and the strange room, leaving out the last vision entirely. 

When he finished Caitlin looked surprised but not totally shocked.  
“That makes a lot of sense actually, I was having a hard time believing Thawne would buy this for himself.” Grinning, she held up a green mug with a rest symbol on it, below it were the words “silent night.” That made Cisco smile and he relaxed enough to sit down. 

“Y’know for a total sociopath, he sure made an effort to keep Hartley around, making him a room and everything” Caitlin said thoughtfully.  
“You think Wells made it for him?” Barry spoke up.  
“Well from what cisco described it doesn’t go at all with the rest of the house and come on, green walls, bookshelves, a piano? It was clearly tailored to someone’s interests”  
“Hm, good point, but he had more money than he knew what to do with, it doesn't seem like a huge sacrifice on his part. In any case Cisco’s right we should try to reach out to Hartley see if he wants anything here first. I guess we don’t have much else to do here until then.” he said sounding cheerful at last. 

None of them made a move to leave however. Barry and Caitlin were, perhaps not with as much depth, pondering the same questions Cisco had been wondering earlier and Cisco’s thoughts were still clouded with the events he had just witnessed, knowing there was no way he could face Hartley and wondering if there was any way he'd be forgiven if Hartley ever discovered what happened.

**Author's Note:**

> Decided to finish this because it was the only fid I didn't accidentally delete from my computer. :-)


End file.
